Like No Other
by Raining Parade
Summary: When Jasper and Emmett find a very familiar girl while out hunting, a forgotten part of Bella's past comes to light. And somehow, Jasper can't seem to stay away from this mysterious new character...
1. Introduction: The Fallen Bride

She lay in the snow, unconscious. Her dark, cherry brown hair fanned out around her head, wet from the ice that melted into it. Her eyelids were blue and she wore a wedding dress, white with lace and snow. She must have been beautiful, standing at the altar, holding a petite bouquet. I leaned down to get a closer look at the girl. Who had left her here, in the cold?

The scent suddenly wafted around me. Inhaling the frigid air, I could feel the ice in my lungs. It was tinged with a vaguely familiar aroma. The rabbits' blood on my lips no longer had a taste. Barely a foot away from her throat, it took all my strength of will to find my thoughts. _So familiar…Just like…_

"Jasper! Let's go!" Emmett's command was a bleary echo in the back of my mind. "Jasper!" I felt his hand on my shoulder and turned, startled. "What're you doing?" He glanced down at the girl in the snow. "Who's this?"

It took a moment to find my voice. "I don't know. We should take her back with us."

My brother eyed me wearily. "Why? Someone's probably looking for her."

"We're taking her back with us. She'll die before anyone finds her. And she's just like… she's like…"

"Like what?" He looked down at her, fully absorbing the fallen bride. He took a breath and the two of us stood there, both aware of what the other wasn't saying. Emmett leaned down and lifted her, definitely refusing to breathe in. He took her to the Jeep and we drove home in silence.

The hair, the _scent_…

It was like Bella all over again.


	2. Chapter One: Unique

It was almost four A.M when the girl finally woke up. Carlisle hadn't left the freezing human's side since Jasper and Emmett brought her home, struggling to warm up her icy frame. Esme and Edward lingered, flitting in and out of the room throughout the night. Rosalie stood crossly by the door, silently watching as Carlisle tended to the nearly unconscious newcomer. Jasper and Emmett lounged on the upper floor, sort of watching TV, sort of having a conversation.

"Did Alice tell you where she went?" asked Jasper suddenly. He'd been wondering about her absence since they'd returned a few hours ago.

"I haven't seen her since before we left. Go ask someone who's been here for the last three days."

"She's probably just gone to Milan or somewhere for shopping. She's done that before, right?"

"Yeah, she flew to Milan for the night. That's likely." Emmett rolled his eyes.

"It's happened before. She did this last month… twice." Jasper was tapping his foot nervously. "She likes to indulge. It's fine. She'll be back soon." He seemed to be consoling himself.

"Dude. Chill," said Emmett in monotone, his eyes glued to the screen.

"You're not really watching this, are you?" A teenage girl on TV was squealing over her sixteenth birthday present, a horse-zebra hybrid.

"No, I'm vegetating on the screen." Jasper heard no sarcasm in his brother's voice. Sighing, he got up and went downstairs to check on the snowy bride.

He stopped breathing, so as to avoid inhaling her scent, and stepped into the room. The girl looked better now. Alive. He held his hand out near her face, feeling for a breath. It was steady and consistent… and warm. Carlisle sat at a desk by the darkened window, furiously taking notes. Glancing up, Jasper saw that his father wasn't watching him. He let his hand slide down to the girl's throat and rested his cold fingers above her heartbeat for a moment.

Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. Jasper drew his hand back and took a step away from the bed. She inhaled sharply and sat up, startled.

"Where am I?" she demanded breathlessly, looking around. Carlisle was suddenly beside her.

"You're in Forks, Washington, in the Cullen residence. Jasper and his brother, Emmett, found you in the snow in Southern Canada. Do you remember anything?" The girl stared at him for a moment as she struggled to recall her past.

"Ashly. My name is Ashly." She looked down at herself and widened her eyes in horror. "Why am I wearing a wedding dress?!"

"You don't know?" said Jasper, raising an eyebrow.

Ashly looked up at him and their eyes met for the first time. Her eyes were a dark, chocolaty shade of brown; nearly black. Around her irises was a barely noticeable ring of cherry red. Surprised, Jasper drew in a quiet, sharp breath.

_Huge_ mistake.

In a moment he had her on her feet and in his grasp, hands gripping her shoulders tightly. She cried out in fear, unsure of what was happening and unsteady from lying down for so long. Jasper's face lingered near her throat. His eyes were closed, half of his mind preparing for the sweet taste of her blood and the other half trying desperately to resist the temptation.

"What the hell?!" shrieked Ashly, feeling his freezing breath on her neck.

"Jasper!" Carlisle had a hand on Jasper's arm, frowning. "JASPER! Let go. _Now._" Ashly struggled, but could not break free. Jasper lifted his head, breathing slowly. His eyes were crazed. "Jasper! Listen to me!" As if with great difficulty, Jasper turned his head to his father. Carlisle could see the terror on the young vampire's face as he reluctantly released the girl. _He's insane!_ thought Ashly. Jasper slowly left the room. Still dazed, the girl could have sworn he heard him whimpering, or making some sort of strange, animal-like noise.

She sat back down on the bed and looked up at Carlisle, a hand on her forehead. "What the hell was that?!" she demanded. The doctor smiled weakly.

"I'm not sure you'd believe me if I told you," he said.

"What… what do you mean?" She closed her eyes and sighed. "God, what happened? I don't remember anything."

"Nothing at all?"

"No, whenever I try to remember something, I draw a blank. There's just nothing there."

"So there's no one you can contact?" Carlisle sighed. "It's probably not such a good idea for you to stay here."

Esme suddenly entered the room with a bowl of soup on a tray. "Ah, you're awake! I'm sorry, did Jasper scare you?"

Carlisle smiled. "This is Esme, my wife."

"Uh, hi… Nice to meet you. Was that Jasper? Yeah, he scared me a little. What was he doing?!" Esme put the tray on Ashly's lap and sat down on the side of the bed.

"He… has some difficulty controlling his desires. But trust me, it won't happen again."

"What do you mean, 'his desires'? It felt like I was being hunted or something." _Oh-kay, this only getting scarier by the second. The wedding dress, the crazy attack… If that was his way of expressing affection or something, I'm gonna get the hell out of here before I have to see him again. Creeper._

Esme laughed nervously. "Oh, he won't hurt you. And I'll talk to him. Have your soup."

"Huh?" Ashly looked down at the tray in her lap. "Oh, thank you." Still frightened, her hand shook as she finished the bowl.

* * *

"Jasper, what the _fuck_ was that?" Edward Cullen barged into Jasper's room. His brother was on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling. "Do you have any idea how badly you scared her?!"

"No, I can't read minds," replied Jasper evenly. He was angry at himself for almost killing someone and at Ashly for being in his house, tempting him. And although he knew he shouldn't be, he was also extremely angry at Carlisle for stopping him.

Edward ignored his brother and continued. "You need to control yourself! You've been fine with Bella for a year now, why is this new girl different?" He paused, reaching into Jasper's mind for a name. "Ashly. Why is Ashly different?"

Jasper laughed bitterly. "She smells better."

"You're sick."

"Why, because she's more tempting than your girlfriend?"

"No, because you sound like a monster. Listen to yourself."

Jasper closed his eyes and sighed, shuddering. Fragments of Ashly's scent had floated upstairs, all the way to his room. "I can't help it." He paused. "Do you know where Alice is?"

"I haven't seen her. She disappeared while you and Emmett were hunting. And speaking of that, you _just_ hunted! You shouldn't be 'tempted' for another week, at least. So again: _What the fuck was that?!_"

Jasper ran his fingers through his messy blonde hair. "Shut up, Edward. You're acting like I don't know that. I have no idea why I couldn't control myself. I just craved her, suddenly. Maybe I was just too close to her. She's… unique."

Edward raised an eyebrow. Jasper sounded much like himself when he first met Bella, he realized. _Which is strange,_ _because he's already got someone, _he thought.

"Jasper, I think you better call Alice. You need to distract yourself or something." Edward left the room and shut the door, standing outside for a minute. He listened for Jasper's movement but heard nothing. His brother was obviously still on the floor. _He's just lazy. He'll call her eventually,_ thought Edward, walking down the hall to his own room.

A few minutes later, Jasper fished his cell phone out from a pocket of one of the many pairs of jeans on the floor. He dialed Alice's number and listened for a ring, but it never came. There was only an off-key, robotic voice claiming that the number had been changed.

_What?!_ he thought, dropping the phone. _But why would she do that? And not give me the number? _Frowning, he leaned against the wall and slid onto the carpet. He stayed there until the sun rose outside the window.


	3. Chapter Two: Vampires Don't Exist

Alice Cullen stood in the pouring rain. The view from the cliff was staggering – The Pacific Ocean spread out before her, the various caves below her… but she saw none of it. Her sight was smeared like a wet canvas from tears that hadn't stopped flowing since she'd left home.

The vision had come to her in the middle of the night, the vampire equivalent of a nightmare. Jasper, the love of her life, the fiber of her very being, would fall for someone else. She hadn't see the girl's face; Alice only knew she would be human. And he would _want_ her like he had never wanted Alice. The human would drive him crazy.

Jasper's own voice rang in her head now. _Alice's visions always come true, unless something changes the future. _Then Edward: _The future can always be changed._

But there was nothing she could do about this. Alice knew it, deep in her mind. So she left him alone to find his new lover… his new companion… his new soul mate_,_ if one could have a "new" one.

She cried out, falling to her knees. Her short hair clung to her face as she sobbed, her tears instantly washed away by the rain. What was there left to live for? He was gone. Looking into the horizon, she wiped her eyes instinctively. He was probably wondering where she was. It wouldn't last long, though. Alice knew they'd already found each other and it wouldn't be long before they fell in love. And of course, he would forget all about her. She wouldn't matter anymore to her Southern gentleman. He wouldn't _care_ for her.

Letting out another sob, she coughed and curled up on the cliff. The rock was comfortingly solid beneath her and she closed her eyes, feeling the rain on her skin and the hard surface under her. The sun was rising then, and she waited until the rain stopped before getting up and brushing herself off. Sighing, she stared at the water, which was now glinting beneath daybreak's light. _I need to distract myself. I'll go to Tokyo, or Paris, or Milan. _

Alice ran a hand through her nearly dry hair. For the first time in her life, shopping didn't seem like enough. There was only one thing she wanted, and she wasn't going to find it in a store.

It just so happened to be the one thing she knew she'd never have again.

* * *

Ashly woke late in the day to the sound of piano and laughter echoing through the house. Beneath the pleasant morning sounds, she could also hear hushed voices.

"Jasper can't handle it. I talked to him last night," said a man.

"That's very strange. Didn't he and Emmett just hunt?" It was the doctor. "He's just going to have to control himself because she has nowhere else to go."

"She can stay with Bella."

There was a pause in the conversation.

"How will we explain her? We found a girl in the dying of hypothermia in the snow while we were 'camping' in Canada and she needs a place to stay because she doesn't remember anything and has no family to contact?"

_Bella._ Somewhere deep in the recesses of Ashly's mind, the name rung a bell. Frowning, she struggled to remember just who 'Bella' could be, but she couldn't reach the memory. It was as if a part of her brain was locked away and she simply had misplaced the key.

She got out of bed and threw back the curtains, embracing the sunlight. She could now really see the room. The walls were a deep, royal shade of purple and the carpet was cream-colored. The bed looked like solid mahogany, exactly the same finish as the well-stocked bookshelf and the vanity against one of the walls. Atop the vanity was a wrought-iron candelabrum. Looking down, she found that someone had changed her out of the wedding dress and she now wore silky drawstring pajamas and a matching silk camisole. _Who changed my clothes?!_ she wondered, hoping it was Esme and not the doctor.

Ashly stepped out of the room and looked around at the spacious home. It struck her then that the Cullens were probably very rich. If only she could find them…

"Oh, Ashly! You're awake. Here, Rosalie's made your breakfast. It's on the table. I changed you out of your wedding dress last night… hope you don't mind. It's at the dry cleaner's right now. Hopefully it didn't suffer too much water damage to be salvaged! Do you need anything else?"

"Er… no, I think I'm fine. Thank you for taking my dress to the dry cleaner's… and breakfast… and the pajamas…" She smiled weakly and realized suddenly that Esme Cullen was very beautiful, and from what she remembered from last night, her husband was very good-looking. Not only that, but if she looked past the creepiness, Jasper was really very handsome, too. Suddenly, Ashly found herself wondering about the rest of the Cullens. The doctor had mentioned "Emmett" last night and Esme just mentioned "Rosalie"…

The woman smiled. "Alright, then. And you're very welcome. It's our responsibility to take care of you until we can figure out who your family are! We're good friends with the Chief of Police here in Forks. I assume Carlisle will get a hold of him soon so we can talk all this over." She then pointed Ashly to the kitchen.

Feeling silly, Ashly took a seat at the large wooden table and took a bite of the scrambled egg that was there for her. It was exquisite, and pretty soon it was gone.

As she took her plate over to the sink, Ashly noticed how clean the kitchen was, as if it had never been used. Out of politeness, she washed her plate and hunted for a towel with which to dry it.

"Hello," said a voice behind her as she rooted through a cabinet on the floor. She turned around so fast she hit her head and was sitting with a hand on her temple, staring up at an exceptionally handsome boy… her attacker from last night. Jasper.

"Uh, hi… I remember you!" she said stupidly. _Oh God, that was dumb. _

"And I remember you." Jasper stared down at her with blank eyes which depicted no emotion. His hands were in his pockets and he slouched slightly, as if he were completely comfortable just staring at her. A long, awkward silence hung between them.

"Do you know where I could find a towel?" said Ashly finally, irritated by the boy's strangeness. He looked down and laughed quietly, then held out a hand. Cautiously, she took it, and then stood up.

"Yeah, here." He reached into a cabinet above Ashly's head and handed her the towel, but didn't move. She was now pinned between him and the counter… and extremely uncomfortable. "I'm Jasper."

"From last night."

"Yep." Another very awkward moment passed.

"Could you move?"

"I could." He didn't.

She met his eyes and realized he was at least a head taller than her. He didn't react this time; he only stood with one hand beside her on the counter and a playful smirk on his face.

"Then… while we're here, would you care to explain last night?" _Might as well make the most of the situation,_ she thought.

"Of course. I crave your blood and it's taking more willpower than I've ever exercised in my life not to messily devour you right now. However, you're pretty, and my girlfriend would hate me if I killed anyone, so don't worry about it."

Ashly raised an eyebrow. "Wow, really? That's quite a story." _Girlfriend? _she thought, then stopped herself. _Wait, I don't care. Geez._

"No, it's true. In all honesty, you are the most appetizing human I've ever met," said Jasper with a completely straight face.

She leaned as far back on the counter as she could and eyed him wearily. "Alright… so what are you supposed to be? Some kind of vampire?"

He smirked again, this time almost devilishly. "Lucky guess."

Ashly sighed and took a step to the right. The counter struck a ninety degree angle there, and Jasper only moved with her. She was now cornered by a crazy boy who was obviously trying to freak her out.

Leaning forward, she put a hand on his shoulder and smirked. _Two can play at this game, _she thought. "Okay, Jasper." He smiled as she said his name. "What will it take to get you to move?"

Much to her annoyance, he was otherwise unfazed. "Oh, I don't know. You could try a few things."

"Such as?" She whispered in his ear, sliding her hand down his back, hoping she could surprise him into stepping back. He _had_ a girlfriend. But Jasper only reacted by placing a hand on her waist.

"Well… here's a hint," he paused, lowering his voice to a breathy mumble. "This won't work."

Ashly realized something strange, then. "You're not breathing," she gasped.

"Vampires don't need to breathe," he replied. She could hear the smile in his voice.

"What…?" She slid her hand off his back and looked him in the eye, counting seconds. "How can you not breathe?" _Thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two…_

"I told you. I'm a vampire." She felt a cold rush on her face with his voice, and he didn't inhale after that. His breath was _cold._

"Vampires don't exist, you—" she stopped, gasping. A chill ran up and down her spine; he was licking her neck directly above her pulse, which promptly skyrocketed. It was cold, like ice water, but her skin instantly heated up. "What are you doing?!" she whimpered, grabbing onto the first thing she could find. Unfortunately, this happened to be his hand.

Jasper lifted his head, chuckling again, almost to himself. "Convincing you I'm a vampire. Do you believe me now?" Without waiting for an answer, he raised an eyebrow, turned on his heel, and sauntered out of the kitchen.

Ashly stared after him, a look of horror painting her face. "You're crazy, you know that?!" she shouted, though he'd already left the room. Her voice echoed. The house suddenly felt eerily quiet.

Little did she know, he was only waiting outside the elegant archway, around the corner. Smiling at the sound of her voice, he then retreated to his room.


	4. Chapter Three: Strange

**A/N: So it's kind of a boring chapter, but I guess it's an important one. It's short, though, so read on! I'm working on the next one right now so it'll probably be up soon…**

Ashly lay on her stomach in the guest bedroom, which she assumed was hers for the time being. She had changed into a pair of jeans, a blue long-sleeved shirt and a white hoodie, provided to her by Esme. Before her was a carefully constructed house of cards. She may have been bored on the outside, but her mind was racing with thoughts of the morning's events as she balanced the cards against one another.

Jasper had _licked_ her. The more she thought about it, the more she returned to the same conclusion. _It wasn't so bad. I may have even _liked_ it._ Shivering, she thought of his freezing tongue against her skin. Ashly could still feel the contact on her neck vividly.

But her mind was mostly preoccupied with the fact that he may actually be a vampire. It felt silly to be considering it, but all the evidence pointed to his unlikely claim: his skin was cold, his breath was cold, he didn't even _need_ to breathe, and he almost bit through her neck last night and this morning. Not only that, but hadn't Carlisle and the other voice she'd heard in the morning mention something about hunting? The more Ashly tried to convince herself he wasn't a bloodsucking monster, the less she could make herself doubt it. And strangely, she wasn't bothered by it one bit. In fact, it was kind of hot.

_But what if it was just a dream?_ she thought. _Maybe I just imagined him attacking me last night. No… this morning he said he remembered it, too. _She sighed and turned over, lying on the floor. _I'm just bored. Maybe I can leave the house. Get to know Forks, Washington a little bit…_

Suddenly, the door whooshed open, knocking over Ashly's card house. _Damn it,_ she thought, turning over to meet the intruder. He was tall, well-built, and could probably snap Ashly into pieces if he wanted to. But his expression was good-natured and he seemed friendly enough.

"Hey. Ashly, right? I'm Emmett. The Chief of Police and his daughter are here to see you. That's Bella. She's Edward's boyfriend." Ashly got up and followed him to the foyer.

"Who's Edward?" she said as their steps echoed. The Cullen house always seemed so lifeless and empty.

"Uh, my brother. Jasper's my other brother and Rosalie's my girlfriend and Alice is Jasper's girlfriend. And in case I didn't mention it, Bella is Edward's girlfriend. Also, Carlisle's my foster dad and Esme's my foster mom. Bella is Charlie's daughter, and he's the Chief of Police." He smiled as they entered the well-lit area by the door. "Got all that?"

"Yeah, sort of. Not really." She smiled back at him and then looked around, meeting eyes with who she assumed was the Chief of Police. He wore a blue uniform with a star on front. Next to him was a girl Ashly nearly recognized as herself. They looked so similar, she could have sworn it was just her reflection before her, come to life out of a mirror. They had the same face, the same hair, the same stature. The only difference between them was their eyes; Ashly had a red ring around her irises. And even that was barely noticeable. The two girls stared at each other in wonder, both thinking the same thing. How could this be a coincidence?

"So you're Ashly," said Charlie.

"Uh, yeah. That's me," she replied.

"Well, hello. I'm Charlie, Chief of Police here in Forks. Carlisle tells me you don't remember anything about your past?"

"No, sir, nothing at all."

"Hm. Well, this is my daughter Bella. She came with me here to get to know you a little bit." He glanced at Bella and then back at Ashly. "You two look pretty alike, huh?"

"Yeah, it's pretty weird… Dad, me and Ashly are going to go for a walk."_ That's odd…_ thought Ashly. Bella nodded toward the door and the two girls stepped outside and onto the wet grass.

"So, you're staying with the Cullens?" asked Bella. They were making their way around the house toward the forest in the back.

"For now, I guess, until they can figure out what to do with me," she replied.

"You've only been here a day, right?"

"Since last night."

"Has anything strange happened yet?"

The question caught Ashly off-guard. "What do you mean, 'strange'?" _Okay, she obviously knows something. _Ashly's heartbeat sped up a bit. _I bet they're all vampires! And Bella would know; she's dating one of them. It only makes sense._ The idea was outlandish, but Ashly was suddenly convinced.

"Just curious."

They stopped walking and Ashly turned to her near-exact clone. "Bella, they're vampires, aren't they?" A look crossed Bella's face.

"What makes you say that?"

"Jasper told me."

"He _what?!_ He told you?!"

"They are, aren't they? It makes perfect sense. I mean, Jasper's so… cold. And he doesn't need to breathe, apparently. And they're all so… pretty-looking. Too perfect to be human. Also, Jasper attacked me once and he…" She paused, shifting awkwardly. "He licked my neck this morning after I ate breakfast."

"Oh, God." There was a pause as the two continued walking. They glanced back at the house momentarily and Ashly gasped. "What?" asked Bella.

"Nothing. Just… keep walking." Bella eyed her suspiciously, but the two of them stepped into the forest. Ashly tried to concentrate as Bella told her the Cullens' stories, one by one, but her mind lingered on what she'd seen when she'd looked back at the house. Jasper had stood in one of the windows, watching her intently. What scared her the most, though, was that she couldn't decide what she was feeling. Was it fear, or something else?


	5. Chapter Four: Love vs Bloodlust

Ashly took a deep breath as her loose fist hung in the air before a closed door. _I still don't know if I should do this,_ she thought. _Maybe I can just leave it. It's not a big deal… No, Bella said it's important that I talk to him. _

In the afternoon, Bella had explained everything to her, from the Cullens' lack of human needs (food, air, sleep, etc.) to each of their life stories. She had also told Ashly to talk to Jasper, but didn't say why. _It's not because he likes me. He has a girlfriend. _But Bella had also mentioned something about Alice disappearing as soon as Ashly showed up. Alice had the power of premonition, and Edward had told Bella that it would make sense for Jasper's girlfriend to disappear when she foresaw Jasper falling out of love with her. But Ashly still disagreed. Jasper only thirsted for her blood. _That's not love; it's bloodlust._

Trying desperately to clear her head, Ashly took a deep breath and knocked on the door three times, a little harder than necessary. It opened almost immediately.

"I was wondering how long you were going to stand there…" said Jasper, smirking down at her.

"Let me guess. You smelled me right through the door." Ashly shifted her weight to one hip and rolled her eyes, smirking right back at him. "You gonna let me in or no?"

Jasper stepped aside and gestured for her to enter. The room was messy, as if he had spent a lot of time inside – Various books were in stacks around the room and a shoebox sat next to scattered photos on the floor. CDs decorated the area beneath Jasper's stereo system and a sleek iHome sat on the shelf above the desk in the corner. The corresponding iPod, however, was evidently missing, probably buried somewhere.

"So," started Jasper, spinning his desk chair around and sitting on it backwards. "What brings you to my bedroom this evening?" He raised an eyebrow. The smirk remained on his face. Ashly flicked a pair of jeans off a sofa on one end of the room, taking a seat.

"I just wanted to talk… why not get to know each other? I mean, you're the only person I really know living here, hm? Even if our previous encounters were slightly… out of the ordinary." Her tone was blasé as she casually crossed her legs, feeling more like herself than she had since she'd woken in the guest bedroom.

"Out of the ordinary, but not entirely unpleasant?" _Wow, _she thought. _Our conversations sound like a textbook. _

"Maybe not unpleasant. Just different."

"That makes sense, seeing as I'm certainly different." The smirk returned to his face and he leaned forward. Ashly noticed he was still not breathing.

"Compared to…?"

"Other guys."

"Ah." There was an awkward pause as Ashly looked around the room again and at the window. The sun was low in the sky.

"You're very pretty." She looked back at Jasper, shocked.

"…What?"

"You're very pretty," he repeated as he stood up. Reaching out, he pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "You know I wouldn't hurt you, right?"

"Uh… I don't know… and thank you?" _What?! What about ALICE?! Oh God, were Edward and Bella right? There's no way. _

Jasper frowned. "You don't know I wouldn't hurt you?" He paused. "Well, never mind. There's no reason for you to believe I wouldn't because I almost did. Twice." He sat back down, apparently annoyed at himself.

"Wait a minute; don't think for one second that I'm afraid of you. I know you're not human, but I won't give in and be _scared_ of a _vampire_ like some little girl." Her expression was indignant. Jasper only stared back at her.

"You're only… not afraid of me… because you think I'd be satisfied if you were scared?"

"Uh, yeah. Something like that."

"Don't think of it that way! It's like this: I don't have the capacity to keep from… hurting you… but I also don't have the capacity to take a single drop of blood from you. It's like you torture me, but not deliberately." He said this with a completely straight face. This time, Ashly back at him.

"So which is it? You can't be unable to do _both_."

"I can. That's what keeps me obsessed with you. It's like I'm challenging myself even though I already know what I won't do. I won't hurt you. If the moment ever comes when I have the opportunity, I'll probably hesitate long enough to stop myself because I don't want you to die."

Without thinking, Ashly spoke, trying him. "Why?"

"Just because."

"Because why? Because I'm _pretty_?" She leaned forward, raising an eyebrow. "That doesn't make much sense. Resisting the temptation for a pretty face." Again, her tone was characteristically blasé.

"It's not because you're pretty. Though you are, of course." This time, Jasper stood up and took a seat next to her, playing with the ends of her hair. He was a little too close, but it wasn't uncomfortable. They looked at each other for a few moments, finding comfort in each others' eyes. Ashly didn't even realize Jasper was slowly closing the space between them. Their lips finally met, and it felt like the most natural thing in the world.

The contact was electric. Jasper was, as always, icy cold, and Ashly blushed the moment they kissed, which made her warmer than him. He put a hand on the back of her neck, sending a shiver down her spine. She only clung closer to him, tangling her hand in his hair. Just as Jasper began to lean her down onto her back, the door swung open.

"Jasper, I—Jasper!" They both sat up immediately, deer in headlights. Edward stood in the doorway, shocked. It felt like an eternity before he spoke again. "She's staying with Bella."

"What?" Objected Ashly. "I don't… I don't even know her!"

"She's staying right here!"

"She's safer with Bella."

"A few miles won't make much of a difference."

"She won't be in the house with you. She's safer there."

"I'm still _here_!" cried Ashly. "I can hear you. And I don't get it. Why do I have to stay with Bella? Why… why is this so bad?" She could hardly believe her own words. _So this is Edward. Bella's boyfriend. She obviously thinks a little too highly of him. _

Edward looked her in the eye. "I think Jasper and I should talk alone." He walked into the room, grabbed Jasper by the arm, and dragged him out the door, shutting it behind him. Ashly sighed, alone. Quietly, she crept to the door and strained to hear.

"You're trying to convince her it's safe to be around you!" It was Edward.

"It _is_ safe to be around me. I wouldn't hurt her. You wouldn't hurt Bella, would you?"

"You're young. You don't understand. You can't even comprehend yourself!"

"I'm young as a vampire but in human years I'm older than you. And I know my own limits."

"You've had a hard time keeping to your 'limits' for a long time, Jasper. And I didn't expect you to move quite so quickly with this. You should at least wait for word from Alice."

"Alice… left. She's gone. I can feel it. There's no connection with her anymore. A few days' separation never did that to us before."

Edward sighed, almost painfully. "If you hurt Ashly in _any_ way, I'll move her out before you can wipe your mouth clean." Behind the door, Ashly shuddered. "And that's just me; think of what Carlisle would do. Got it?"

There was a pause.

"Fine. I can do that. I won't hurt her. I _can't,_ because I'm not like you, having to control myself indefinitely. Some things I just can't do, as much as I may want to. Like I said, I know my limitations." Ashly ran back to the bed, sitting where she'd been before the two boys had left. Jasper opened the door. "By the way, way to ruin a moment, bro. Thanks for that." He slammed the door, and then turned around. "Sorry. Edward's paranoid. Did you listen by the door?"

"Yeah…" She stood up and walked to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. _He can't hurt me. That's why I'm not scared anymore. Not after last night. _ He smiled down at her, brown-blonde hair falling into his eyes.

Pulling her closer to him, He rested his forehead on her shoulder. Closing his eyes, he listened for her heartbeat. She slid her hands down to his back and waited. But of course, he didn't inhale. "Jasper?" she whispered.

"Hm?" He was calmer than Ashly had seen him in the past day.

"Breathe." She closed her eyes, entirely at his mercy.

"No."

"I trust you." Reluctantly, he took a short, shallow breath and held it. Again, he held one hand in her hair and let the breath out in a whimper. "See? You can do it."

"I don't need to breathe," he mumbled. She could feel the vibrations of his voice in his back.

"You can." He lifted his head and kissed the corner of her mouth, making her smile. She kissed back and then he smiled, running his thumb across her bottom lip. "I need to go to sleep, Jasper." She tried to step back but he caught her waist again.

"Stay here." It came out as more of a question than a command. Ashly smiled again and took his hands, then sat on the floor, taking him with her. They shuffled to the wall and leaned against it, Ashly resting her head on Jasper's shoulder.

"Are you sure? You won't be able to move until I wake up," she mumbled sleepily, smiling.

"I won't want to move until you wake up." He kissed her head and took her hand; their fingers intertwined. His voice was the last thing she heard before nodding off to sleep.


	6. Chapter Five: A Normal Life

Ashly woke to sunlight shining on her closed eyes. Sitting up, she realized she was still in Jasper's room. His arms were wrapped around her, his head resting gently on her shoulder.

"You're awake," he mumbled into her ear.

"Yes… What time is it?"

"Ten-thirty. Would you like breakfast?"

Ashly smiled. "Of course. Thank you." She stood up. Jasper was already at the door, holding it open for her. She stepped through and he guided her down the stairs. Her footing was still weary from sleep.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked when they reached the bottom of the steps.

"_Very_ well." She offered him a huge grin, suddenly remembering last night's events. Jasper loved her. He needed her.

In the breakfast room, Ashly could hear sweet piano drifting in from another room. Jasper gestured towards and held out a chair. She took a seat; a bowl of cereal was already set out before her. Jasper took the seat across from her.

"Who's playing the piano?" she asked, curious.

"It's Edward. He's probably playing for Bella." Jasper's smile never faded from his face, as if he was exceptionally happy just to be looking at her.

"Oh, is she here?"

"Probably. Is the cereal good?" Ashly laughed.

"Yes, the cereal is good."

"Oh, great! I made it while you were sleeping." He paused. "What does it taste like?"

"Sugar, I guess. Sugar and… milk… which tastes like… wet sugar." This time, Jasper laughed.

"Alright, then. I don't remember what food tastes like."

Suddenly, the piano stopped. Edward was leaning in the doorway.

"Jasper, can I talk to you?" His voice was urgent. "Alone."

Jasper glanced at Ashly. She shrugged and he stood up, following Edward out the door.

Ashly could not hear much. It was clear that they were talking about her; Edward sounded concerned and Jasper seemed worried, too, almost annoyed. Only a few phrases of their muffled conversation carried as far as Ashly's ears. Words like "phone", "danger", and her name were vaguely audible.

Both boys walked back into the room. This time, Bella followed Edward.

"Ashly, are you sure you don't remember anything prior to last night?" asked Edward.

"No, I can't recall anything at all. Why? What's wrong?"

"Someone wants you… back."

"Excuse me?" Edward took his cell phone out of his pocket, pushed a few buttons, and then tossed it to Ashly. She caught it and put it to her ear, hands trembling.

"_Edward Cullen,_" It was a woman's velvety voice._ "We have discovered that you recently came into contact with a human girl of approximately seventeen years and have taken her in. She is of great importance to us, and we would like her back. Expect her disappearance soon. Do not call back on this number. In the event that you take action against us, your entire family will be destroyed. Goodbye."_

A chill ran up and down Ashly's spine. Still shaking, she handed the phone back to Edward.

"Who… there's more than one… Why do they want me?" she asked quietly.

"It's probably some vampire clan you were somehow involved with," replied Edward. Ashly looked up. Edward was frowning and Bella stood at his side, looking worried. Jasper stood on Edward's other side, horrified. He was frozen in place. She stared up at him, wanting nothing more than to hold him in her arms and to be held in his. Suddenly, Jasper snapped out of his daze.

"How can we make you remember?" he asked, his voice even.

"I don't know. How do you jog human memory?" said Ashly. Her voice shook slightly.

"The sense of smell is the most sensitive to memories… I guess if you smelled something that you'd smelled before, you'd remember." Edward paused. "But maybe we should wait until they try to take you away. That way, we can find out who they are and why they want you, which would help you piece together your past."

"No, we're not waiting for them to _take_ her. Did you try tracing the phone call?" Jasper's tone was official and serious.

"I tried. The number doesn't exist anymore. It was probably created for the sole purpose of making that call," replied Edward.

"We need to stay with Ashly constantly. We can't leave her alone for a second," said Bella. "Anything could happen. Just like with James."

"At least then we knew who was out to get you," said Jasper. "I'll stay with her. Where's the safest place in this house?"

"The basement," replied Edward. There was a pause in the conversation as all three of them glanced down at Ashly. She was glued to the chair, eyes wide and frenzied. Jasper frowned and took her arm, helping her up.

"It's okay, Ashly. We're going to protect you," he said, trying to comfort her. She didn't reply. Instead, frowned and closed her eyes.

"I thought I remembered something just now," she said. "What's in the basement?"

"Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, an empty wine cooler and bar, a plasma television… you'll be fine, Ashly. I promise," Jasper spoke quickly. "What did you remember?"

"I don't know; something about a wedding underground. You found me in a wedding dress, right?"

"_Underground!_" Edward suddenly burst out. "You said you remembered a wedding underground? Was it cold?"

"Yes, very. Icy. And dark."

"Jasper, the Alvarez. The Alvarez live underground in huge tunnels."

Jasper was speechless for a moment. "The Alvarez… They're… monsters." He turned to Ashly, speaking slowly as if he was struggling to comprehend his own words. "The Alvarez live underground because they can't tolerate sunlight. They're a mutant clan, with painless venom that only makes humans sort of… immortal."

"_Sort of_ immortal?" asked Bella, shocked.

"After being bitten by a vampire of the Alvarez clan, the human body produces enough blood to replace whatever amount it's lost. The body also heals quickly and becomes used to the difficult underground conditions. For example… a human would gain night vision after being bitten so they could see in the dark. A human bitten by a member of the Alvarez is essentially a vampire who eats food and needs to sleep." He paused. "The Alvarez also live under a hierarchy, the most sophisticated vampires in charge and the less intelligent ones beneath them." He paused again, taking a long breath. "They're also known for kidnapping infants and keeping them captive, turning them immortal and forcing them to live in the Alvarez caves for years."

There was a long, somber moment of complete silence.

"So I'm 'sort of' immortal," said Ashly, appalled. "But if they can't tolerate sunlight how can they kidnap me? Was it just an empty threat?"

"It didn't sound like it. Obviously there's been some kind of genetic shift in the last hundred years; they breed fast. Either that, or they have help from a regular vampire," replied Edward.

"This is so strange. How could they want me? Why would they leave me in the snow and then suddenly ask for me back? How did they _get_ me to begin with?"

"Maybe they didn't leave you in the snow," said Jasper. "Maybe you tried to escape."

*

An hour later, Ashly was standing in the basement bedroom. The walls around her were scarlet red, the carpet a neutral shade of cream. Reality felt confusing, as if she'd woken out of a dream and into a nightmare. She only had memories of herself from the last two days, and those only included this strange family of vampires she'd somehow fallen into and Jasper, who she knew she should be afraid of. Ashly lay on her side on the queen-sized bed, which was covered in a black, white and red duvet. She shivered, replaying the voice message on Edward's phone in her mind. Who could possibly be out to get her, of all people? Could she have really been involved with the Alvarez? Without realizing it, she closed her eyes to think. _I guess we'll find out exactly who I was eventually. Maybe I really was an Alvarez slave. Is it possible that I never led a normal life, even before this craziness? Before Jasper?_

Trying desperately to get her mind off of fear, Ashly recalled the brief bliss of her morning. She'd woken in Jasper's arms and he'd smiled at her over breakfast. He'd asked about cereal. She smiled, listening to him in her mind. The sound in her head was silent; but she was suddenly comforted, knowing he loved her.

"Are you alright?" Jasper's voice filled the room, replacing the silence. Ashly sat up, grinning wider. Just as she'd started thinking of her knight in shining armor, he'd arrived.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"I've just spoken with Carlisle and the others. I think everything's going to be alright. Someone's going to have to be with you almost at all times, though." He paused. "You're suddenly very happy." Jasper was obviously worried about her safety and confused about her sudden mood swing.

"I was just thinking."

Jasper's easy smile appeared on his face. "Oh? What were you thinking about?"

"Oh, just someone,"

He raised an eyebrow, teasing her. "Do I know this someone?"

"Possibly." She smirked.

"It's not Edward, is it?" He raised an eyebrow now, feigning concern.

"Oh, no, it's not Edward." She shook her head, eyes wide.

He leaned in close to her so she could feel his icy breath on her face. "I think I have a pretty good guess." He kissed her then, and she realized the electric hot-cold contact was becoming more and more familiar. She put a warm hand on the side of his face, enjoying the moment and then pulling away.

"You know you're going to be okay, right? I'm not going to let you get kidnapped." He gazed at her purposefully.

"Well…" She quickly glanced away and back again, meeting his eyes. "I won't lie. I'm scared. But I know you and everyone else are doing everything possible to protect me. I just hope it's enough… And I want to help. I want to know what I have to do to protect myself." This time Jasper glanced away, digesting her words.

"You only have to make sure you're with me or someone in this family all the times. Don't go out alone. That's really all there is." He ran a hand through her hair, pausing. "I understand you're scared. I only wish I could change that."

Ashly smiled at him, beginning to feel guilty about how worried he was. "You are changing it. A little bit, at least. I'm less scared now… with you around."

"Then I'll be around as much as I can."

She looked down. "Okay," she said, nodding slightly and feeling much like a child being consoled. Suddenly, Jasper's arms were around her and she was surrounded in his embrace. Ashly closed her eyes and put her arms around his neck.

"If nowhere else, you're safe here," he whispered.

And somehow, Ashly knew it was the one thing she'd heard that day that she could wholeheartedly believe in.


End file.
